8:35am

Local and State News

BLOOMFIELD, N.M. (AP) — San Juan County authorities say three residents of Nageezi are dead after a head-on collision involving a big rig that crossed the center line as its driver tried to avoid another accident.

County Sheriff's officials say the accidents occurred Thursday on U.S. 550 just south of Bloomfield.

They say the three killed were from the same family and were in a car that collided with the tractor-trailer rig.

The southbound semi had crossed into northbound lanes after braking to avoid a collision between another big rig and a pickup truck.

8:33am

Local and State News

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell is scheduled to visit the capital of the Navajo Nation in Window Rock, Arizona, Friday to announce a $544 million settlement over allegations of mismanagement of tribal resources.

She released a statement Thursday saying the agreement strengthens ties between the Navajo and U.S. governments and helps empower the tribe's communities.

Navajo officials hailed the settlement as a positive end to a long ordeal. President Ben Shelly, in a statement, called it "a victory for tribal sovereignty."

8:28am

Local and State News

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Secretary of State Dianna Duran is refusing to place advisory questions on the general election ballot in Chaves County.

Duran said Thursday the county missed a Sept. 9 deadline for getting questions on the ballot.

The state Supreme Court last week ordered Duran to add ballot questions polling voters in Santa Fe and Bernalillo counties about marijuana penalties. However, Duran said the court wrongly determined that the deadline was Oct. 4.

10:06am

Local and State News

LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) — A report released by the District Attorney's Office in Las Cruces says a former district attorney and staffers deleted politically sensitive emails before leaving office.

The report released by current District Attorney Mark D'Antonio's office says the emails were found to be missing when the office received a public records request last spring by the state Democratic Party.

That request sought records related to then-District Attorney Susana Martinez's first campaign for the governor in 2009 and 2010.

12:13pm

Local and State News

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Renewable energy advocates say the state's largest electric utility is underestimating the costs that will be passed on to customers under a proposal to shut down part of an aging coal-fired power plant in northwestern New Mexico.

The Santa Fe-based group New Energy Economy in a filing with the Public Regulation Commission on Friday accused the utility of withholding from regulators key information about the plan's price tag.

12:09pm

Local and State News

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Bernalillo County authorities say an armed robber was shot and fatally wounded by an employee at an Albuquerque-area Dairy Queen.

Sheriff's Sgt. Aaron Williamson says deputies in the area on a traffic stop heard the gunshots, went to the business and found the wounded man outside with apparent gunshot wounds late Thursday. He later died.

Williamson says the robber pointed a gun at a worker at the counter, demanded and received money but continued to point the gun. Williamson says that's when a second employee shot the man multiple times.

12:08pm

Local and State News

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico's most populous county no longer will keep inmates in jail while their immigration status is being checked if there's no order to keep them in custody once they've posted bail.

Bernalillo County officials say the new policy means the county won't keep inmates confined at the Metropolitan Detention Center merely on the basis of a request from immigration authorities.

According to the Albuquerque Journal, County Attorney Randy Autio said the policy change is a result of court cases around the country.

9:21am

Local and State News

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Family members of developmentally disabled New Mexicans suing the state say a Medicaid assessment system puts recipients of services at risk.

The Albuquerque Journal reports attorneys for eight families asked a judge Wednesday to halt a new method for evaluating recipients to determine their level of services, which can include 24-hour residential care as well as occupational and speech therapy.